


London Bridge is Falling Down

by Isadore



Series: Children's Songs [1]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Future Fic, Gen, Timey-Wimey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-27
Updated: 2013-03-27
Packaged: 2017-12-06 16:39:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/737841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Isadore/pseuds/Isadore
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I'm too angry to play this game again!" The Doctor stomped away. "I already did it once." He stomped back. "I can only abide one mysterious person from my future per incarnation, thank you very much."</p>
            </blockquote>





	London Bridge is Falling Down

He had wavy auburn hair that was somehow both brown and red at the same time. His eyes were the bluest blue and his grin rivaled the Cheshire cat's. He wore an unzipped brown leather bomber jacket that may have been from the actual 1940s, dark wash skinny jeans that definitely weren't, a white t-shirt with what was clearly the silhouette of an Ood, and red Chuck Taylor high tops. He was wearing a bio-damper somewhere. The Doctor could tell.

He frowned. He didn't like that.

"You look a bit out of place," The Doctor commented on his appearance. None of his clothes were from the same era. Also, it happened to be 1814 and they were standing on London Bridge. So.

"Out of time, really," the other man (still a boy, really) replied cheekily. Still grinning. He lifted his right arm and pulled back his sleeve, revealing a vortex manipulator. 

But it wasn't just any vortex manipulator. No, The Doctor recognized it. He was sure. "You'll want to be very clear on how you came to have that in your possession."

The man-boy laughed as he pulled down his sleeve and then let his arm fall. "You're not the only one who has a close personal relationship with River Song."

"You'll have to forgive my assumption. Dr. Song has paired the idea of giving up that manipulator with the phrase 'over my dead body' so many times, well, if you know her as well as I do, you understand."

"Do I detect a note of jealousy? She's right- you are hard work young."

"I am not young!" The Doctor was angry, then. He hadn't been young in a long, long time and as far as River was concerned he wasn't young now, either. He'd known who she was for ages. They'd been married over a century. He'd taken her to the singing towers five years ago (from his point of view). And yet she was still in his life; literally, she was asleep in the TARDIS right now. Whoever had written the 'til death do us part' bit in wedding vows had not had the common courtesy to consider time traveling spouses who still valued their independence. 

"Calm down, old man; you'll crack the ice."

"You listen to me, fly boy, and listen good. You might know me in the future, but don't think for a second that means you know me now. I didn't come here to chat, so why don't you take that sorry excuse for a time machine and go get yourself caught between parallel universes."

The other man-child appeared unfazed. "I've been to the void- didn't much like it. Look, I'm not here to upset you. I came for the same reason you did; Stevie Wonder singing below London Bridge at the last great Frost Fair. I must have heard the story a thousand times. Had to see it for myself. Didn't expect to run into you, though. Since, you know, you're down there. On the ice."

The Doctor ran his hands agitatedly through his hair. "You shouldn't know that. That's not- it was her birthday-it was the best worst birthday in the history of birthdays. Who the hell are you, anyway?" He dropped his hands out of his hair and pointed an accusing finger at the boy. Definitely boy.

The boy shrugged. "That's a simple question with a complicated answer. Who are you?" he asked with a knowing grin that was all to smug (if you asked The Doctor).

The Doctor scoffed. "You clearly already know."

"You're The Doctor. But that's not your real name."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Yes, you're sooooo clever. Go on then, who are you?"

The boy grinned. "Well, since you don't seem to think we're on real name terms: I'm The Pan."

The Doctor laughed. And laughed and laughed. "I've heard stories about The Pan." He shook his head. "You're not him. Can't be."

"Can and am." The Pan gave a tiny bow, as if to say 'the one and only, at your service.'

"You're a liar."

"I learned from the best," The Pan said with a grin. "Believe what you want, though," he shrugged, somehow managing to do it jovially. Can one be jovial when shrugging? He was. "Sometimes I go by Robb, if that suits you better."

The Doctor made a ridiculous noise that was supposed to be irreverent but just turned out, well, ridiculous. "What, parents named you Robert but 'Bob' just wasn't your style?"

Robb rolled his eyes. "Really; so much snark. My parents didn't name me Robert. I said I go by Robb. I prefer Pan in public, but you're a special case, aren't you? Would you like me to call you John? I know you're trying to do that whole...be less out there thing. Plus, we wouldn't want Other You overhearing, would we?"

The Doctor glowered. "John is fine."

"So John, crossing your own timeline..."

"Time is not the boss of me." The Doctor crossed his arms.

"Are you moping?" Robb raised an eyebrow. "It is really weird for me to see you like this."

"Then go away!" The Doctor's arms sprung back apart. "I was here first. Twice!" He turned to ignore Robb, but didn't actually walk away. He just looked out over the ice.

Robb turned and followed The Doctor's gaze. "You already lived through this once. It's only fair that I have a turn."

The Doctor turned back towards Robb. "What gives you any right to just- just..." he threw his hands up, "pop in and watch my happy memories unfold?! You shouldn't know about it. You shouldn't be here."

"That makes two of us." Robb crossed his arms. "Look, have you seriously not figured this out yet?"

"I'm too angry to play this game again!" The Doctor stomped away. "I already did it once." He stomped back. "I can only abide one mysterious person from my future per incarnation, thank you very much." He reached out and very deliberately poked Robb in the middle of his chest.

"Have you even looked at me?" Smug, again.

"You look ridiculous!" The Doctor poked him again. "Your clothes are all out of sync," he tugged on his jacket. "Your hair can't decide if it should curl or lie flat or if it should be brown or ginger," he pointed at his hair like he was picking a guilty man out of a criminal line up. "Those might definitely be a pair of shoes," he pointed to the offending articles, "that I wore in my last incarnation and... ohh..." Much of the tension left The Doctor's body and he sagged in his stance and unclenched his fists. He was definitely looking at Robb now. His eyes were wide, taking him in. He reached his right hand up and scratched the left side of his face.

Robb gave him a wave and a smile. "Hello."

The Doctor let his arm fall back down to his side. "River told me she was pregnant earlier today."

"Is she in the TARDIS?"

"Yes. I didn't want to wake her..." The Doctor stared at Robb. At his future.

"She always has called you a nostalgic idiot."

"Did I send you here to make myself feel better?"

"Hell no. You had nothing to do with it," Robb assured him. "I mean, apart from over-using this event as a bedtime story. I'm naturally very curious and you tend to exaggerate circumstances. I wanted to see if it was true."

"Well, still. Knowing you make it this far..." The Doctor smiled. It was very reassuring.

"Well, if you want me to make it further... I might have nicked the vortex manipulator," Robb looked a little sheepish through his grin. "And by 'might have' I mean 'definitely.' If you could remember to stop mum killing me that would be brilliant."

"How old are you?!" The Doctor was suddenly tense again.

"Old enough!" Robb defended, very boy-like. 

"You've been in the void?!" The Doctor suddenly remembered how casually Robb had mentioned it. He no longer felt reassured. "How long have you had that thing?!" he gestured at Robb's wrist. "Return it, this instant!"

"No way! The TARDIS practically gave it to me. Hardly counts as stealing. You're both overbearing, honestly!" It was Robb's turn to throw his hands up.

"Well, you're the first new Time Lord in centuries, forgive us for trying to keep that a secret!" Of course, This Doctor screeching at a future version of his unborn child on London Bridge in 1814 had made no such plans of secrecy. But it was obvious he would; the bio-damper, the boy's aliases... "Have you regenerated?!" The horrifying thought struck him. "River will kill me if you've regenerated, never mind me stopping her killing you. Your eyes are blue- neither of us have blue eyes- you've regenerated!" His accusing finger was out again, pointing.

"I haven't, honest!" Robb held up his hands defensively. "They're TARDIS blue. That's why I've got them. Or at least that's what you always said."

That calmed The Doctor a little. "Okay, so, good. Alive, and still on your first incarnation. You won't tell me how old you are?"

Robb gave him a look that clearly said he doubted The Doctor's level of seriousness. "That's a bit of a spoiler. I mean, if I told you, you'd... you'd hide the manipulator from me once I got to be this age and then PARADOX." He crossed his arms. "Do you ever follow your own rules?"

"Yeah, rule one."

"Don't wander off? I mean, clearly you've just done that." Robb pointed beyond The Doctor, to the TARDIS near the end of the bridge, as proof.

"No, the other one." The Doctor crossed his arms. "The Doctor Lies."

Robb raised his eyebrows in realization. "You're going to lie to mum about meeting me."

"Yes I am," he said with a nod. "She'll murder me if she finds out I've met you and she hasn't, or- or- or that you're The Pan!" His arms exploded out and up in dismay one again, and then quickly found their way into his hair. "The stories...Robb..."

"Mostly in my future!" Robb assured him, holding his palms out in a guesture that clearly said 'whoa, slow down.' "Besides, uh, she figures out The Pan part pretty quick," he said, and dropped his left hand down to his side while is right went up and scratched his cheek.

The Doctor froze. "How quick?"

Robb scrunched up his face, reluctant to tell. "The day I'm born."

"Oh, fantastic!" The Doctor threw up his hands again."Goes through labor and then finds out her tiny, precious baby is The Pan," he started pacing, but quickly stopped and snapped his attention back to Robb. "Oh no, I don't tell her, do I? Please say I don't."

"No, er, I sort of do," he explained as he anxiously rocked back on his heels. "She doesn't realize it until a bit later, though."

This information did not make The Doctor feel any better. "How can you tell her you're going to be The Pan on the day you're born?! How could you know that?" he was beyond incredulous. Also, pulling out his hair.

"Because I have two parents who understand Baby and one of them decided to tell me all about Peter Pan right after prompting me to pick a name!" It was Robb's turn to get wild with his hands. "I didn't know my future- I just wanted to fight pirates and live in a tree house!"

The Doctor deflated again and grinned. "All of time and space and you want to live in a tree house."

Robb rolled his eyes and tried to defend himself. "I was hours old! Dear God, you are impossible. Look; you're attracting onlookers," he pointed. Some people were indeed taking notice, but not only in The Doctor. It was decidedly because of their combined outrageous gesticulation. 

"Ha, as if!" The Doctor continued gesticulating. "I'm at least period appropriate! How did you know I wouldn't know who you were, anyway?"

Robb pointed to his father's face. "Big giant frown and your general attire. If you were the you that I'd come from when I stole the manipulator, well, that could account for the frown but not the clothes. Any other you that knows me smiles when you see me, though."

"You've run into other, future versions of me?" The Doctor tried to remain calm.

"...this is becoming all too spoiler-y."

The Doctor no longer tried to remain calm. "Which is why this is all very not good. I only found out about you today! If you had told me and you weren't yet conceived... it might have prevented your entire existence! You weren't exactly planned, you know."

Robb huffed, blowing his fringe out of his face. "...okay, fine, you might have told me that you came here again on the day you found out about me. So I knew. But really, Stevie Wonder- that's the real reason! Moments away from singing down there," he gestured to the side of the bridge.

The Doctor pointed at Robb. "Which is why you should return that thing to your mother and beg forgiveness before Past Me notices the spectacle we've created." He dropped his hand and smiled. "But first, I should very much like to hug you."

Robb smiled back. "I think I can manage that."

And they did. And Stevie Wonder started to sing "Isn't She Lovely?"

Still hugging, The Doctor asked "I do alright, as a dad? It's been so long..."

"Better than alright," Robb assured him, grinning as he stepped away. 

"Set the vortex manipulator back to five seconds after you've left. She won't even know you've gone."

Robb shrugged and rolled his eyes. "Unlikely. That woman knows things. _Knows._ "

"Well, it's worth a try, anyway," The Doctor shrugged back, grinning.

Robb grinned back. "Just, remember this moment- us meeting here today- and... it'll be worth all the trouble."

The Doctor nodded and swallowed hard. "Always. You've given me a great gift here today, Robb."

"I know," he said cheekily. "But don't be too much of a sap about it, dad, honestly- the way your face contorts-"

"Oi!" The Doctor protested.

Robb laughed, and then he was gone.


End file.
